This race conversation is ridiculous. Yes on first pass he looks like he was gaming it. But then his reply was rock solid obvious, it’s a complex identity.
Understand that “black” is a skin color for most of the world’s local race systems.
In Central America, being Asian (indian etc) with dark skin, being Latino with dark skin, being African or Arab or whatever with dark skin is black. Being the same with light skin is white. Being the same with medium skin is brown.
My wife came here and looked around, had some papers to check, and was like, I guess I’m black? I was like, well, probably not? The checkboxes are 100% based on American legacy racism and don’t make any sense to outsiders let alone many insiders.
All correct
An 18 year old son of an academic is 100% going to assert his identity in a “disruptive” way on a college app, not to game the system though it would be acknowledged its place, but to proudly challenge the status quo “we are African and I am not white therefore I am African American take that the system”
There is discontent with that system, and large numbers of people want to stick it to it. However, there is a widespread perception that there are double standards, entirely dependent on group membership, that are influential in public tolerance of the extent one can stick it to the system, and that is something of an issue regarding ability of progressives to sell policy to poor dumb country white guys.
The core of Trump may really just be the aggression in his defiance. If I think on it, Mamdani woulda been better off saying "fudge yeah I gamed it, fudge that ****", including the swears. Not with progressives, ofc, but with the wider electorate. No apologies. Blur the lines, get gangster with it. Full demagogue defiance. Offer policy decisively without the attached ideology and it'll sell like crazy.
You kinda touched on it with that "and I'm not white" bit. If a white dude with African nationality had done the same thing it, perception would perhaps be different. Even if it wouldn't - the perception is that such a person would be hammered by progressives, but, Zohran gets a pass, because, well, not white. I am 100% sure, living in the country amongst poor dumb factory workers, that the system of different standards for different ethnic groups is an issue causing a major ruckus.
If you don't think progressives can sell policy to that demo anyway, I guess it's nothing. If you think they need to - well, yeah, the interaction of progressive ideology with Mamdani's personal action and later apologizing is just gonna cause irritation.
